Six French teens are on trial for the death of a teacher.(Latest Update)

In 2020, the brutal killing of Samuel Paty, a teacher in France, by a Chechen refugee shocked the nation. Paty was tragically stabbed and beheaded on October 16, after showing cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad in a class discussing freedom of expression. This incident has led to the trial of several young suspects, aged between 13 and 15 at the time, who are now facing serious accusations in connection with the murder.

The suspects are accused of slander and of identifying Paty to the killer at the school. They face a potential maximum sentence of 2.5 years in prison. The involvement of these young individuals in such a grave incident underscores the complexities and severity of the case.

The youngest of the suspects was just 13 years old at the time of the murder. She was suspended from school nine days before the killing, for reasons unrelated to the incident. However, she falsely claimed to her father that she had been disciplined for objecting to Paty’s alleged request for Muslim students to leave the class during the presentation of the cartoons. In reality, she had not attended the class where the cartoons were shown.

The girl’s father, upon hearing her account, posted videos on social media demanding Paty’s dismissal. Prosecutors believe these videos played a significant role in inciting the murder. They argue that these posts influenced 18-year-old Abdoullakh Anzorov to travel approximately 80 kilometers from Normandy to Conflans-Sainte-Honorine, near Paris, where he carried out the attack.

The case also involves five other young suspects. They are alleged to have assisted Anzorov in identifying Paty at the school, reportedly in exchange for a payment of €300. One of these individuals claimed Anzorov had expressed a desire to film Paty apologizing for the caricatures.

A second trial is scheduled for next year, focusing on eight adults accused of complicity in the murder. These include Brahim Chnina, the father of the 13-year-old girl currently on trial. Among these adults, two friends of Anzorov face charges of “complicity in a terrorist murder,” the most serious accusation in the case. One is alleged to have helped Anzorov purchase weapons, while the other is accused of driving him to Paty’s school on the day of the murder.